Life has a lot of firsts – driving a car, going to college, getting a job, and more. Each first comes with its own set of nerves and anxieties as well as excitement and joy.

I experienced yet another first in my life when I traveled to Gettysburg for my first internship earlier in June.

I worried for days leading up to the weekend that I would mess something up or that I was not good enough to overcome the challenges that may await. I was terrified that I was not ready for this first.

So many people told me that everything would be fine, but I did not believe them. I fretted over every possible mistake that I could make and everything that could go wrong. I completely ignored all of the positive things that could come out of the weekend.

I was wrong not to believe them. There is a life lesson to be learned about the time I wasted dreaming up all of the worst-case scenarios: do not worry over something in the future because there is no way to know what will happen. In fact, there is a good chance that nothing extremely terrible will happen at all.

I ended up enjoying every second of the weekend. The interviews I was worried about making went smoothly. I gathered enough confidence to meet new people and discover more about the field of journalism. I got along well with all of the interns, especially my roommate for the weekend. My mentors were extremely helpful and guided me through all of my tasks and helped me to make so many worthwhile connections. And, most importantly, I learned a lot.

I expected the weekend to be stressful and long, but I had lots of fun. Everyone around me was friendly and I even had some free time to relax. The weekend went by so fast that I was sad when it was over. I found it hard to leave by the time Sunday rolled around. If given the chance, I would go back and do the internship again. I was worried for nothing.

As I move forward, I am less worried about future internships and I will try not to worry as much about the future in general. Sometimes, all it takes is jumping headfirst into something completely new.

Worrying makes any situation a lot worse than it needs to be. It drags out a one or two-day event for weeks or even months. Essentially, it is pointless and completely unnecessary.

Instead, it is important to live life in the present.

And, internships are learning experiences. Any mistakes or challenges that I was worried about initially would have only provided me with the knowledge to navigate challenges I could be faced with as I progress in my career. Internships are super beneficial in the long term.

Whatever lies ahead whether it be jobs, internships, or any changes in general, spend time picking out the positive possibilities rather than the negative. Chances are, there will be more positive experiences than negative experiences.